


Into the Fire

by breemeup



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: AU, Canon Divergent, F/F, Red Lotus Korra
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-09
Updated: 2016-03-09
Packaged: 2018-05-19 10:25:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5963917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/breemeup/pseuds/breemeup
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her whole life, Korra has been raised by a motley crew of traveling circus performers who are secretly a group of vigilantes. Korra has watched them dole out their version of justice and now it's her turn to do her part for the cause of justice. She must infiltrate to home of Hiroshi Sato, the head of Future Industries and act as his daughter's bodyguard. </p>
<p>Korra is excited for her first mission, but little does she know, not all is as it appears.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Up until this moment, Korra wouldn't exactly say that her childhood had been _deprived_. Chaotic? Maybe. Different? Definitely. After all, she's known pretty much her whole life that being raised by a nomadic group of circus performers/vigilantes isn't exactly the norm. And in spite of the constant moving and lack of stability, Korra had lived what she considered to be a happy, fulfilling life.

But just at this moment, standing in this mansion, for the first time in her life, Korra feels underprivileged.

Chandeliers made of crystal and silver adorn the ceiling, and vases and statues that Korra knows instinctively are very old and very valuable sit atop mahogany tables and shelves. Everything about the place is gilded and shiny, and Korra feels a hot surge of anger. _People throughout the four nations and the_ _United Republic_ _are suffering, starving, while people like the Satos have more wealth than they knew what to do with._ Korra thinks with narrowed eyes.

The sound of someone clearing their throat startles Korra out of her reverie.

“Oh!” She turns and finds herself face to face with an elderly, kindly looking man.

“What can I do for you, Ms.-”

“Raava, sir,” Korra replies.

“ _Raava,” Korra told Zaheer, “My alias will be Raava”._

“ _Raava?” Zaheer, the leader of their group raised a scarred eyebrow, “Why Raava?”_

“ _Because-” and for a moment, Korra was tempted to tell him the truth, to tell him that the name had come to her on the whispers of a dream, that it was the name of a woman who sang to her in her sleep every night, but the moment passed and for some reason, Korra's instincts told her to lie, “It's just um, it's just the name of some girl I met when we were traveling through Ba Sing Se. I thought it was pretty, so-”_

“ _The name or the girl?” Zaheer laughed, putting a fatherly hand on Korra's shoulder. He'd been the first person that Korra had told about her preference for girls, and like the open minded man he was, he'd accepted it without a blink of an eye. After all, he himself knew the delights of exploring with more than one gender._

“ _The name!” Korra laughed. Her whole life, she'd used aliases to conceal her identity. Lia, Rin, Ming, simple, common names that Zaheer had chosen for her, that he'd given her to keep her safe from those who had murdered her parents. But now, for the first time, she got to choose her own name._

“Well, Ms. Raava,” the man says, nodding his head politely, “What can I do for you?”

Korra held up a newspaper clipping and smiled, “I'm here about the opening you have for a body guard?”

“Ah, yes! Excellent,” the man clapped his hands together, “Come in and have a seat, Ms. Raava, so we can speak in depth about the position”.

Korra follows the man into a sitting room that is every bit as ornate as the room she'd been standing in.

“Have a seat,” the man gestures to an uncomfortable, expensive looking chair and Korra complies.

“Now tell me why you want this job”.

“ _Now, here's why you're doing this job,” Zaheer sat down next to her and Korra all but wiggled in excitement. This was to be her first solo mission, her first real contribution to the cause that she, Zaheer, and the others all lived for. Her whole life she'd watched the others hijack Earth Kingdom convoys and return the taxes within them to the Kingdom's citizens, sabotage freighters full of weapons to be used by the Republic, and beat down local warlords and free those living under their rule. She'd been trained from birth to use her firebending and martial arts, and now, at last, it was her chance to truly help others the way her family had, “The man we're sending you to spy on is Hiroshi Sato, wealthy industrialist with possible anti-bender sentiment. Our intel tells us that he's been supplying an anti-bending group called the Equalists with weapons to oppress benders”._

“ _Doesn't sound very equal to me,” Korra scoffed._

_Zaheer smiled affectionately, “Indeed. It's up to you to verify these claims and track Sato's moves. Ghazan and Ming-Hua will be staying in the city near you. Report to them when you can. You'll be posing as Sato's daughter's bodyguard. He is specifically looking for a non-bender bodyguard so you'll need to suppress your firebending when you're in their presence, understood?”_

_Korra nodded._

“ _And remember-”_

“ _Freedom for all above all else” he and Korra said in unison._

_Zaheer stood and Korra followed suit._

“ _Stay safe, Korra,” he ruffled her hair._

“ _I will,” she smiled back._

“Well,” Korra says, “I would like the chance to put my marital arts skills to use and to protect others”.

The man nods as if he's heard this before, so Korra takes a chance.

“I also need the money,” she smiles ruefully.

At this, the man gives a surprised laugh, “You're honest, that's always a good sign. Well, Ms. Raava, I believe a demonstration of your martial arts expertise is in order”.

Korra stands and nods. “I'm sorry,” she says, “I didn't catch your name”.

The man laughs again, “I'm Hiroshi, Hiroshi Sato”.

 

-

Korra gaped at the man. Hiroshi Sato isn't at all like she'd expected. Rather than the snooty, stuck up man she'd imagined, Sato is kindly and engaging. _Don't let your guard down_ , Korra reminds herself. After all, this man quite possibly wanted all benders, including herself, dead.

“Not what you were expecting?” Sato chuckles.

“Uh-um, no, sir,” Korra replies, “I guess I was expecting someone a little less-”

“Down to earth?”

“Yes, sir”.

“Ms. Raava, I believe that a good bodyguard must not let their expectations get the best of them, hmm?” Sato raises an eyebrow.

“Yes, sir,” Korra blushes. Something about the man sets her on edge, as if he can see right through her, as if he knows exactly who she is and why she's here.

“Now, let's see about those martial arts skills of yours”.

-

Korra breathes heavily, a drop of sweat snaking down her face. Two men surround her, each of them armed with knives. A third man lies on the floor, unconscious. One of the remaining men approaches, knife pointing at her. It takes everything in her power not to fire bend her way out of this.

“ _Now, it's going to be tough not using your bending out there, but it's imperative that you don't. We don't want your cover being blown, do we?” Zaheer moved into a fighting stance. “Now show me, what do you do when an armed man comes at you?”_

Korra hits the man with an inside crescent kick, knocking the knife out of his hand. She turns back on her left foot and strikes him in the shoulder with a back spin hook kick. The man falls to the floor rubbing his shoulder.

The last man standing bounces on his toes, staying out of Korra's range, as if challenging her to make the first move. She crouches into a fighting stance, her eyes focused on the man's eyes.

“ _Remember, don't watch the hands, watch the eyes. Hands can deceive you, eyes cannot”._

The man's eyes shift up and Korra ducks just in time as the man aims a roundhouse at her head. She crouches down and sweeps the man off his feet. He falls and she steps down on the hand holding the knife. Korra gives a grin as the knife falls from his hand.

A series of claps makes Korra look up. Hiroshi Sato stands at the edge of the room, smiling at her approvingly.

“Very good!” He walks over to her and puts a hand on her shoulder, “I must say, I'm impressed. I've never seen someone take them out so quickly”.

“Thank you, Mr. Sato,” Korra pants.

“Call me Hiroshi. It's what all my employees call me”.

“You mean-”

“Yes,” Hiroshi smiles, “You got the job”.

_I'm in._


	2. Chapter 2

Hiroshi gives Korra the rest of the day off, so she walks from the wealthy sector of Republic City down to the slums populated by members of the triads and the working class poor. She stops at a dilapidated apartment building that seems to be held together by sheer will alone and then climbs the stairs to the uppermost apartment.

“Ghazan,” she whispers, knocking at the door, “Ming-hua!”

 The door opens and a man with long hair and a mustache smiles down at her. “Ming-Hua!” he yells, “Look who's here! Come in, Korra, come in!”

 Korra walks into the apartment, closing the door behind her, “Hey guys,” she grins, “How's the new place”.

 “Terrible, of course,” Ming-Hua, a woman with long black hair, says, “But we've had worse,” she shrugs.

 “Once I get paid, I can help you guys get a new place,” Korra offers.

 “No, no it's-” Ghazan starts, “Wait are you saying-”

 “I got the job!” Korra yells.

 “Great work, kiddo,” Ghazan pats her head, “I knew you could do it”. Ming-Hua nods in agreement.

 “Thanks,” Korra smiles, “So what have you guys been up to?”

 Ghazan and Ming-Hua look at each other. “Well,” Ming-Hua starts, “We've really just been settling in. P'li is trying to gather as much information as she can about these Equalists and Zaheer is still with the circus, he can't be seen in the city. We're risking a lot being here as it is”. Korra nods. Her whole life they've been living in the shadows, trying their best to stay out of the eyes of the law.

 “So what do I do now that I'm in?” Korra sits cross-legged on the floor.

 “Keep a sharp eye on Sato. Take mental notes of his comings and goings, try to find evidence of a connection between him and the equalists,” says Ghazan, “But be careful. He's a very powerful man and could be working with the leader of the Equalists”.

 “ _Amon,” Zaheer said, the bitterness in his voice clear, “He's the leader of the Equalists and a very dangerous man. There are rumors,” he stops, “Rumors that he can take away a person's bending”._

 “ _No way!” Korra exclaimed, “Only the Avatar could do that”._

 “ _That's what we thought. Until now. Try and validate that rumor if you can, Korra. There's a lot at stake here”._

 

-

 

After her visit with Ming-Hua and Ghazan, Korra wanders through Downtown Republic City, getting herself acclimated to the place. She spends what little money she has on some dumplings and sits eating them at Republic City Park. Airships float above her while the evening breeze brings with it the scent of the sea. Korra takes a deep breath and relaxes. Yeah, she could get used to this town.

 The sound of a man yelling into a megaphone interrupts Korra's reverie.

 “Are you sick of being pushed around by benders, losing your jobs to them, living in fear of them? Are you tired of being treated as second class citizens by the bending elite? Then join Amon and the Equalists and fight for your rights!”

 She looks up for the source of the voice and sees a man on a stage trying to rile up a small crowd. Korra stands, stuffing the last bit of dumpling in her mouth, and makes her way over to the stage.

 “Fight for your freedom from the oppression of benders!” The man continues. He carries a stack of fliers that he's handing out to the crowd. _Now's my chance._

 “Excuse me!” she raises a hand, “Excuse me! Can I get one of those fliers please?'

 “Of course, young lady! It's good to see a youth so interested in the cause!” He bends down and hands a flier over to Korra. On it is the face of a masked man with the words “Join the Equalists! Fight for freedom!” on the bottom of the page.

 “When is the next meeting?” Korra asks the man, flipping the flier over to see if there's any more information.

 “That'll be announced soon enough!” the man says before returning to his megaphone.

  _I'll take this back to Ghazan when I get the chance._ Korra puts the flier in her pocket.

 She takes a walk around the park, absorbing the day's events. So far, everything seems to be going well. She wonders how P'li is doing on her own mission to gather information and she wonders what work will be like. Korra makes her way down to the edge of Downtown, facing Air Temple Island and Aang Memorial Island. She sits on a bench and contemplates the statue of the Avatar. Something about him seems familiar, as if she'd met him once long ago. The statue makes her feel a peace she hasn't felt in a long time. And again, that name comes back to her as if it were a dream: “Raava”.

 The new avatar, an unknown water bender, had disappeared as a child, the world continuing on without an Avatar.

 “ _We don't need an Avatar to bring balance to the world,” Zaheer had told her once, “We normal human beings, if we work together, are more than capable of doing that”_

 Korra looks at the statue of Avatar Aang one last time and something within her hurts.

 

-

 

Later that night, Korra lays in her bed in the room that Hiroshi had given her in the servant's quarters. Tomorrow is going to be her first day at work, her first time meeting the girl she's supposed to guard, so she should be trying to get a good night's sleep, but for some reason she's too on edge to even close her eyes. Maybe it's her encounter with the Equalists, or some kind of anxiety over starting work tomorrow. But whatever the reason, it keeps her up the entire night.

 The next morning, Korra is exhausted, but at least she'd had a night free of the dreams that have been plaguing her lately. She gets ready for work, putting on her uniform and washing her face with cold water to fight the sleepiness.

  _Welp. Time to meet Asami Sato._

 

-

Asami Sato was not a bit pleased when her had told her that he was on the look out for a bodyguard. She's even less pleased now that he tells her that he's found one.

 “But Dad!” She protests, “I don't need some big bulky man following me around all the time. I can keep myself safe, you've made sure of that!”

 “Honey,” Hiroshi says sternly, “We've talked about it, the world is a dangerous place, and after what happened to your mother-”

 “Don't bring mom into this!” Asami snaps, “Don't use her to try and manipulate me into-”

 “Asami, I'm not trying to manipulate you, I just worry. Do this for me, please”. The defeated look on her father's face softens Asami.

 “Okay, dad,” she reaches out to hug him, “But I'm not going to like it”.

 “You don't have to like it,” Hiroshi hugs his daughter, “You just have to live with it”.

 “Fine, fine,” Asami sighs, “So where is he?”

 “Your bodyguard?”

 Asami nods.

 “Look behind you”.

 Asami steps away from her father's embrace and turns around. In the doorway to her room stands a dark skinned girl about her age. The girl nods, her short brown hair bouncing as her head moves.

 “I'm Raava,” She says, holding out her hand.

 “Asami,” Asami takes Korra's hand and shakes it.

 This new bodyguard is definitely not what she expected.

 

-

Hiroshi's daughter is exactly what Korra expected. Luxurious black hair falls perfectly down her back and expertly applied makeup adorns her face. Yes, she is every bit the prissy pretty rich girl Korra figured somebody so wealthy would be.

“Nice to meet you,” Asami says, stepping back.

“Likewise,” Korra nods.

“I'll leave you two to get acquainted,” Hiroshi says, heading for the door, “I trust I'm leaving my daughter in good hands, Raava”.

“Yes, sir”.

Hiroshi leaves the room and the two girls stand in awkward silence.

“Look,” Asami starts after a few moments, “I realize this is your job and I don't want to be rude, but I don't really need a bodyguard, okay? I can take care of myself”.

Korra very much doubts that, based on what she sees of the other girl. “Well, Mr. Sato hired me to take care of you, so that's what I'm going to do”. She tries to keep her disdain for Asami out of her voice.

Asami looks at Korra helplessly before sighing. “Fine,” she says, clearly resigned to her fate, “Just please try not to be as overbearing as I'm sure my father wants you to be”.

“Yes, Ms. Sato,” Korra resists to urge to roll her eyes at Asami and forces herself to be civil.

“And please none of that Ms. Sato stuff. If I'm going to have to do this, let's make it the least amount of weird possible,” Asami says with a wry smile.

“O-okay,” Korra says, caught off guard “Is just Asami okay then?”

Asami nods.

The awkward silence returns. This time, it's Korra who breaks it.

“Soooo what should I do then?” she asks.

“Um, well, I guess you could go back to your room, I won't be going out anytime soon,” Asami shrugs.

“With all due respect, your dad wants me to be around you at all times”.

“What?” anger is apparent on Asami's face, “This is ridiculous!” She turns her back on Korra. “Fine. Just step outside so I can get dressed for dinner”.

This time Korra does roll her eyes, but she steps out, closing the door behind her.

Several minutes pass and Asami doesn't come out. Korra gives her a few more minutes before knocking on the door.

“Asami?” she asks. There's no answer, “Asami?”

After a few moments, Korra opens the door. The room is empty and the window is open.

Asami Sato is gone.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, welcome back!
> 
> Just letting you know that I have a tumblr: hansolosmother, so if you want to talk about the fic, you can always message me on there!
> 
> I'm also taking fic commissions! If you're interested, please message me on here or through tumblr. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Korra races to the window and climbs down the trellis under it. She races out to the street and looks around frantically, but Asami is nowhere to be seen.

“Sato!” She yells out, “Where the fuck are you?”. Korra runs down the street towards Downtown Republic City. The street is teeming with traffic. Sato Mobiles compete with scooters and bicycles for space, and pedestrians litter the sidewalks. “Sato!” Korra calls out, earning some odd looks from passersby. She approaches the center of Downtown when she sees the reason for the traffic: an accident involving a scooter and a pedestrian.  _ Fuck. Sato better not have gotten herself hit. _ Korra runs to the site of the accident and she sees Asami, all right, but she’s the one on the scooter rather than the pedestrian.

“Sato!” Korra yells and Asami looks up at her, guilt written all over her face.

“R-Raava,” she stutters.

“I turn around for 2 seconds and you get in an accident!” Korra roars, “You hit some poor pedestrian!”

“I-it’s okay,” the pedestrian says from the ground. He’s a handsome looking boy around their age.

“It’s not okay!” Korra yells as Asami helps the boy up, “Listen, princess. You might not care, but I  _ need  _ the job! I have people depending on me! I can’t afford to be fired!”

“Well I don’t need a bodyguard, got it?” Asami says, her face bright red.

“You clearly do if you’re going around hitting innocent boys!”

“I’m fine!” the boy says.

“Shut up,” Korra says, turning back to Asami, “I'm not taking my eyes of you for a moment, got it?”

“Well that’s too bad because I have a date tonight, and you’re not going!”

“A date?” Korra looks from the boy to Asami and rolls her eyes, “Don’t worry, princess, I’ll be there”.

“Stop calling me that!” Asami frowns, “And no you won’t be!”

 

-

Korra is, in fact, at the date that night, much to Asami’s dismay. They go to a swanky restaurant called Chong’s Cuisine. Korra can’t help but stare in awe at the decour. Crystal chandeliers decorate the ceiling while candles light the surface of the tables. Her entire life, Korra had been used to scraping by, not ostentatious luxury. She frowns at the thought that people like the Satos get to enjoy this every day of their lives while people starve on the streets. The more she comes to know of the Satos, the more she resents them.

The boy from the accident, who had introduced himself as Mako, refuses to take off his red scarf as he steps inside the restaurant, and Korra feels a sall sense of solidarity with the boy. He clearly comes from a similar background and it’s comforting to know that she’s not the only non rich person in the room. She’s also surprised that Asami would deign to date someone like him. She’d figured that Asami is the kind of person who only mingles with the upper crust of society. Asami must be doing this out of pity, Korra reasons.

They sit at a booth in the corner of the restaurant and a snobby looking waiter stops by to take their order. Korra looks at the menu, completely flabbergasted. She has no idea what anything on the menu even is. She looks over at Mako, who looks just as lost as she is. 

Asami orders first and then Mako clears his throat and says, “I’ll have what she’s having”. 

“Same,” Korra says. 

Asami turns back to Mako, ignoring Korra completely, “So tell me about yourself,” she says. 

“Er, well, there’s not much to tell. I’m work in a factory and I do pro bending”. 

“No way!” Asami says excitedly. Korra rolls her eyes and tunes out the conversation. 

Her eyes flit around the room, taking everything in, checking for possible threats, just as Zaheer had taught her. There don’t appear to be any immediate threats, so Korra relaxes in her seat, still ignoring Mako and Asami. 

“Excuse me,” Mako stands, “I need to use the restroom”. Asami blows him a kiss and Korra almost throws up then and there. 

Asami and Korra sit next to each other in silence. 

“Sooo,” Korra says when she can’t take the awkwardness anymore, “How are you liking him so far?” 

“I’m not discussing this with you,” Asami replies. 

“You like him, don’t you?” 

Asami blushes, “Well-” 

“Hello, ladies,” Korra and Asami look up and find themselves face to face with a tall, lanky man with a toothpick in his mouth. He looks at Asami, “You wouldn’t happen to be Ms. Sato, would you?” 

“Who wants to know?” Asami says cautiously. 

“You’ll find out when you meet him,” the man smirks and grabs Asami’s arm, “You’re comin with me”. 

“I don’t think so!” Korra leaps up and attacks the man with a flying sidekick right in the gut, “Asami, run! I’ll take care of this guy”. 

Asami nods and heads to the exit, but two men built like flying bison block her way out. 

“Going somewhere?” One of the men says. The other man attempts to grab Asami, but she ducks and sweeps the man off his feet with her legs. She then turns on her heel and kicks him in the head with a back spin hook kick, knocking the man out. 

Korra throws the man she’s fighting against the wall with all her might before running over to help Asami. The last man standing smirks and swings his arm back to hit Korra.  _ This is too easy.  _ She ducks the man’s arm and steps back, resisting the urge to use her bending to finish him off. Instead, she punches him in the solarplex and knees him in the groin. The man bends over in pain and she finishes him off with an elbow to the head. 

Korra and Asami look at each other, both clearly out of breath. 

“Aren’t you glad I was here, princess?” Korra grins. 

“And can’t you see that I can take care of myself?” Asami retorts with a smile. 

“You may have taken one of them out, but there was no way you could have taken all of them,” Korra says, “But yeah, you did pretty good,” she grins. Asami smiles back. And it feels as if somehow the two of them have reached an understanding. 

Mako finally returns from the bathroom and looks around the room in confusion. 

“What the flameo happened here?” 

Korra and Asami look at each other and break into laughter. 

 

-

 

The police finally arrive at the scene and make Korra, Asami, and Mako stay for questioning while they arrest the men. 

“So tell me what happened,” The chief of police, a tall, severe looking woman named Lin Beifong asks them. 

Korra looks up at Lin and suddenly she feels dizzy. It’s like she’s seen Lin before or someone connected to her. Maybe in a dream or in a past life. She tries to place Lin but to no avail. All she’s left with is a phrase that repeats itself in her brain: “twinkle toes”.  `

“Twinkle toes?” she says under her breath. 

“What was that?” Lin looks down at her, eyebrow raised. 

“Um er nothing,” Korra blushes. 

“So are you going to tell me what happened tonight or not?” Lin asks sharply.

Korra tells Lin what happened in the restaurant. 

“Must be the work of the Triads,” Lin mutters. 

“Triads?” Korra asks. 

“Gangs of criminal scum,” Lin replies, “They were probably going to hold her for ransom. Hiroshi Sato’s daughter is a very high profile target”. Korra nods, “You’re lucky your bodyguard was there,” she tells Asami. 

“Yes, ma’am,” Asami says. 

“I’m going to take in the suspects, have a safe night”. Lin nods before taking the criminals away. 

Asami looks at Mako, a bittersweet smile on her face, “Some first date, right?” She says. 

Mako laughs, “Hopefully the next one will be a lot less… exciting”. 

“There’s going to be a next one?” Asami smiles. 

“Of course,”Mako says.

Korra rolls her eyes. This assignment is clearly going to be a pain in the ass. 

 

-

  
  


Korra has the dream again that night. It starts as it always does: she’s sitting in the middle of a meadow. It’s not your average meadow though. It’s effervescent and the colors seem more real, more tangible than those in the real world. Strange creatures fly above her head or skitter around in the meadow. Korra has come to love this dream. She feels safe in this meadow for some reason. And then the voice calls to her. 

“Korra!” it says, “Korra! Come find me, come find Raava!” Korra stands up, like she always does and runs through the meadow, searching for the source of the voice. 

“Raava!” she calls out, “Raava?” Just as she reaches the edge of the meadow, the dream ends and Korra wakes up. 

She sits up and runs a hand through her hair. 

“Who is Raava?” 

 

-

 

Asami and Mako’s next date is a pro bending match. Korra is so excited about the prospect of finally being able to watch a pro bending match, that her annoyance at having to play the third wheel is completely forgotten. 

Asami drives them to the bending arena and Korra gasps at the splendor. She’s never seen a more beautiful building before in her life. The lighting makes it seem as if it’s made out of solid gold and when Korra enters the arena, she finds that it is just as ornate inside.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Asami smiles at Korra’s amazement. 

“It really is,”Korra says. 

Mako leads the girls to their seats and goes down to the locker rooms to prepare for his match. 

“Have you ever seen a pro bending match before?”Asami asks.

“Never,” Korra shakes her head, “I’ve always wanted to watch one, but none of the places where I’ve lived had it”. 

“I haven’t seen one either,” Asami says, “Did you move around a lot growing up?” 

Korra nods, “Yeah, my family work for a circus, so we’re never in one place for long”.

“Sounds exciting,” Asami says. 

“It is,” Korra shrugs, “But it’s kind of nice staying in once place for a change”. 

Then, the match begins and the girls lean forward in their seats in anticipation. 

“Ladies and gentlemen!” The announcer calls out, “I give you the Fabulous Fire Ferrets!’ 

“Wooo!” Asami stands up and cheers as Mako and the rest of his team walk into the ring, “Go Mako!” Korra smiles at the other girl’s enthusiasm. She hadn’t pegged Asami as the type who’d be into sports. 

“And going up against the fabulous bending brothers and their teammate: The Ba Sing Se Badgermoles!” The other team walks onto the ring to mixed applause. 

“Benders, take your places! And go!” 

The first thing Korra learns about pro bending is that it has a lot more rules than she’d thought it would. The second thing she learns is that she completely and utterly loves it. 

“Go Fire Ferrets!” she yells with Asami as she stands on her seat, “Take out those Badgermoles!” 

Korra finds herself hypnotized by the style of bending at play. She’s never seen anything like it! The smooth movements of the waterbenders, the flashes of fire that dance across the ring, the way the earthbenders manipulate the rings. It’s all so incredible. She wishes she could be a part of it. 

The second round of the match begins, and just as the benders are taking their place, all the lights in the arena go out. 

Korra shifts her stance, ready to fight if necessary. 

“Everybody stay calm!” the announcer says, “I’m sure the lights will be back up in just a moment! Everybody-” 

The announcer is cut off as a different voice speaks through the speakers. 

“Good Evening, citizens of Republic City,” the voice is soft but it has an undercurrent of danger, “I am Amon, leader of the Equalists! And I am speaking here today to say that the oppressive reign of benders over non benders will soon be at its end! Non benders, have hope! Join with me, and together we will cast off the chains of oppression set upon us by benders! Join with me for a better tomorrow!” 

The sound cuts out and the lights turn back on. Korra can see police officers racing through the arena, trying to find the source of the sound. 

“Asami,” she says, “ are you okay?” 

“I’m fine,” Asami replies, “I can’t believe those awful Equalists had the audacity to target the arena”. Korra raises an eyebrow. She knows that Hiroshi is most likely involved with the Equalists and she’s surprised that Asami doesn’t share his views.

“You don’t think he’s right about the oppression non benders suffer?” 

“It’s not that, there are definitely problems with how the government is run and how it affects non benders, but there are better ways of bringing about change that don’t involve terror!” 

Korra nods. 

“We’d better get you back home,” Korra says. She and Asami walk out of the arena and into the night. The air is silent and still, as if holding it’s breath in anticipation for something big.


End file.
